April 1 – Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur will take their fierce north London rivalry overseas for the first time when they face-off in a pre-season friendly in Hong Kong this summer. The clash will be played at the newly opened Kai Tak Stadium on July 31, marking the first North London Derby to be hosted outside of the UK.
The match will headline the Hong Kong Football Festival, which is looking to bring elite European football to the region. The festival will also feature Liverpool taking on AC Milan on July 26 in what will be the first football match at the state-of-the-art 50,000-seat venue.
Kai Tak Stadium is the centrepiece of the HK$30 billion Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) project, designed to transform Hong Kong into a premier destination for international sports and entertainment. The venue has already attracted major corporate investment, with Marriott Bonvoy and HSBC signed on as key commercial partners under the ‘Championing Hong Kong’ initiative.
For Arsenal, this marks a return to Hong Kong for the first time since 2012, while Spurs continue their global outreach after touring Japan and South Korea in 2024. Tottenham are regulars when it comes to touring Asia, largely thanks to having perhaps the most popular south-east Asian footballer in history, Son Heung-Min, on their books.
The game adds to a packed summer of international fixtures for English Premier League clubs. Manchester United will play post-season friendlies in Hong Kong and Malaysia before heading to the United States, where multiple English clubs will be based.
Meanwhile, Chelsea and Manchester City are yet to confirm their pre-season plans as they weigh up commitments to the expanded FIFA Club World Cup, which kicks off on June 15.
With Kai Tak Stadium making a statement as a major football venue in Asia, the North London Derby will be another milestone in its emergence as a world-class sporting hub.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at moc.l1743610717labto1743610717ofdlr1743610717owedi1743610717sni@g1743610717niwe.1743610717yrrah1743610717
